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The proud owner of a new horseless carriage often loaded his family
into the machine while the neighbors ogled with envy. Invariably, the
budding driver would over-dramatize the ritual of donning his gloves,
checking his equipment, and cranking the engine into sputtering,
back-firing action, while onlookers held their ears. With heads held
high, the driver and passengers would then begin their baptismal trek
into the country, beaming with arrogant satisfaction. They would take
the way which would lead them past the "right people," of course. If
ever there was a "thrill of a lifetime," this was it. But such were
the ways of life in those days that such joyous beginnings didn't
always have a happy ending.
Somewhere along the way, the tiny engine would start to cough and
sputter. The driver would assure his frightened passengers that there
was nothing to worry about, but the mechanical hiccuping continued.
The driver's assurances would waiver, and when the motor finally
died, the ego-deflated owner suffered the pangs of the damned. When
no amount of tinkering, kicking, or cursing would revive the engine,
the humiliating trip to the nearest farm would have to take place.
The farmer would probably be glad to add to the driver's mental
anguish by making remarks about "them new-fangled contraptions," but
with some degree of stability, he would harness his team and hitch it
to the front of the horseless carriage.
Now gone were the proud airs; mother and daughter blushed with shame
as they were towed back homeward past their snickering neighbors.
Young sons usually enjoyed the experience, but father was ready to
explode. The team of horses, as slow, expensive, and old-fashioned as
they were, got the final horse laugh. It seems right, somehow, that
the term "horse-power" has continued to be a measurement of the
automobile's mechanical muscle. The animal has certainly contributed
so much to civilization that it needs some lasting remembrance with
the vehicle which unceremoniously dumped it from public favor. The
horse was not just replaced, he was caught up in a competitive
situation which saw him maligned by copyrighters, ridiculed by a new
strain of high-powered merchants, called auto dealers, and he was
even attacked by health authorities, who saw the motor car as an end
of manure heaps, disease-toting flies, and assorted other pollution.
Anyone who has ever walked down-wind of a livery stable knows that
the horse had an aromatic drawback. It was also easy for the sly
advertiser to win over a public, who was plagued with a need for
sticky flypaper, insect traps, and foul-smelling sprays. No one
envisioned that the motor car would be all health and happiness,
either, but the economic argument was hammered home by automobile
publicists. They pointed out that each horse in the U.S. required the
production of five acres of land and twenty man-days of work per
year. Ransom E. Olds, writing in "Scientific American" before 1900,
took an swing at the horse when he advertised a new steam carriage:
"It never kicks or bites, never tires on long runs, and never sweats
in hot weather. It does not require care in the stable and eats only
while on the road." William A. White, a famed editor and horse-lover,
wrote, "...he makes no claim to speed, but his carburetor always
works, and while he has but two cylinders, he brings his guests back
in one piece at home rather than downtown at the undertaker's to be
assembled by total strangers..."
Stories of runaways, overturned buggies and other accidents due to
horses were widely exaggerated and overdramatized. Of 476 equine
accidents, analyzed by a prominent magazine, only two were reportedly
caused because the horses involved were frightened by automobiles.
This statistical whitewash was to refute the common complaint that
motor cars were scaring otherwise good, tame horses. The anti-horse
faction, always looking for new ammunition, made the most of a
vicious heat wave which hit New York City in July of 1911. About
1,200 horses dropped dead of heat exposure, and it was quickly
pointed out that motor cars and trucks continued to function without
difficulty or detriment to the health of the populace. The once
overwhelming notes of rebuttal began to flag, and in spite of the
fact that there were 25,000,000 horses in the country in 1912, Dobbin
was definitely "out," and the "Betsy" was "in."
This transition from a centuries-old form of land transportation to
one of automobiles was not easy, and it did not just happen in a day
or two. The horse was, after all, an important part of the economy.
Feed and veterinary bills amounted to millions of dollars each year.
The Chicago Times reported that horseshoes in 1915 required enough
iron to build 60,000 motor cars. Harness makers, buggy-whip
companies, carriage builders, livery stable operators, blacksmiths,
an army of street cleaners, wheelwrights and even hitching-post
manufacturers were all affected by the technological development of
automobiles. These companies had to either re-tool and adapt to the
industry or face the realities of a declining business.
The coming of WWI spurred the production of motor vehicles, and also
upped the need for horses and mules. After the signing of Armistice,
however, the final turning point came. From then on, it was really
downhill for the horse - not into oblivion, fortunately, but to a
minor role of race tracks, rodeos, show rings, riding clubs, and Wild
West movies. The horse retired to greener pastures (or to the glue
factory) and became only a legend in transportation and agriculture.
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